"Dragnet" is an

instrumental An instrumental or instrumental song is music without any vocals, although it might include some inarticulate vocals, such as shouted backup vocals in a big band setting. Through Semantic change, semantic widening, a broader sense of the word s ...

theme Theme or themes may refer to: * Theme (Byzantine district), an administrative district in the Byzantine Empire governed by a Strategos * Theme (computing), a custom graphical appearance for certain software. * Theme (linguistics), topic * Theme ( ...

from the radio and television show of the same name. It was composed by Walter Schumann for the radio show, and was also used on the subsequent television series and later syndication of the TV series under the name "Badge 714". The theme is in two parts: an opening signature "Main Title" ("Dum - - - de - DUM - DUM") and the "Dragnet March" used over the end credits. Popular chart hit versions were recorded by

Ray Anthony Ray Anthony (born Raymond Antonini; January 20, 1922) is an American retired bandleader, trumpeter, songwriter and actor. He is the last living member of the Glenn Miller Orchestra. Biography Anthony was born to an Italian family in Bentleyv ...

and his Orchestra (1953) and The Art of Noise (1987). Film and television composer Nathan Scott, who began orchestrating for Schumann beginning in 1952, later became ''Dragnets second composer following Schumann's departure from the series.

Authorship dispute

After the theme became a chart hit, the publishers of the score for the 1946 film version of ''The Killers'' composed by

Miklós Rózsa Miklós Rózsa (; April 18, 1907 – July 27, 1995) was a Hungarian-American composer trained in Germany (1925–1931) and active in France (1931–1935), the United Kingdom (1935–1940), and the United States (1940–1995), with extensi ...

challenged the authorship of the copyright of the Dragnet "Main Title". They contended that Walter Schumann had visited the sound stage in 1946 when Miklós Rózsa was recording "The Killers", and had reused the melody of a cue for that film known as "Danger Ahead". A settlement between publishers resolved the case by allowing both composers and publishers to share the royalties for the short opening signature "Main Title", which became known as "Danger Ahead" after that. The "Dragnet March" remained the exclusive composition of Schumann. The first four notes of the theme, along with their rhythmic profile, appear in the Prelude to Act IV of the opera Les vêpres siciliennes by

Giuseppe Verdi Giuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi ( ; ; 9 or 10 October 1813 – 27 January 1901) was an Italian composer best known for List of compositions by Giuseppe Verdi, his operas. He was born near Busseto, a small town in the province of Parma ...

Ray Anthony version

The 1953 recording by

and his Orchestra sold over 500,000 copies in the US and rocketed Ray Anthony to popularity. It was available as both a 45rpm 7-inch vinyl record and a 78rpm 10-inch shellac record. It reached number three on the Billboard Best Selling Singles chart and spent two weeks in the UK chart (December 10, 1953 and January 14, 1954), peaking at number seven.

The Art of Noise version

The 1987 version by The Art of Noise was an international hit, and won the 1987

Grammy Award for Best Rock Instrumental Performance The Grammy Award for Best Rock Instrumental Performance was an honor presented to recording artists for quality instrumental rock performances at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958, and ended after the 2011 award, and or ...

. It was used as the theme music for the 1987 film version of ''Dragnet'' based on the TV show. A new version was released the following year, "Dragnet (The '88 Mix)".

Reception

Evan Cater for ''

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

'' describes the 12-inch single as "a catchy mesh of orchestral samples, synthesized noise and clips of dialogue from the film."

Chart performance

The Art of Noise version reached number 60 in the UK, number 84 in the Netherlands, number 25 in New Zealand and number 29 in Switzerland. "Dragnet (The '88 Mix)" reached number 90 in the UK.

References

External links

* (Art of Noise official channel)
ClassicThemes Page about the Dragnet TV series and theme music
{{authority control 1953 songs Dragnet (franchise) Television drama theme songs Art of Noise songs 1950s instrumentals China Records singles